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11 Marketing Buzzwords to Watch for (Avoid) in 2013

You may remember that we covered some popular marketing buzzwords in a post last year. Unfortunately, we can’t stop the buzzword boom and have been forced to write a second post to point out some of the relevant (annoying) buzzwords that you can expect to see in 2013. Take a look at the list below to see which industry terms should be “on your radar” this year.

Bonus points to anyone who actually makes it through the entire post. Good luck!

1. Atomization — While you may have thought this term was reserved strictly for scientists and science fiction writers, it seems to have wormed its way into modern-day marketing. Unfortunately, it means nothing cooler than to take individual pieces of content and spread them across different marketing channels.

2. Digital Native — This is a phrase used to describe those born during the digital age. Also known as another way of saying “young people.” Hint: “digital natives” do not love being referred to as “digital natives.”

3. Disruption — If you’re talking about an innovation or technology that is creating a new market while shaking up an existing market (or replacing an earlier technology), then you’ve got a disruption. It’s also a more dramatic way of saying that you’ve done something outside of the industry norm.

4. Immersive Experience — While “immersive” was originally used to describe engaging digital experiences centered around consumers, it is now used as a catchy way to explain pretty much any visual or digital marketing experience.

5. Influencer — Another word for this is a “thought leader,” or an important person in your industry. Here’s a test you can do to see if someone is an influencer: “Are they important? Yes? Bingo, industry influencer.”

6. Leverage — On the surface, this buzzword seems like one of the most harmless on the list. When marketers indicate that they intend to leverage strategy “X” to achieve “Y,” they’re really just saying that they are going to “use” strategy “X.” For some reason, we all just feel the need to invoke the imagery of intensive manual labor to get our point across.

7. Ninja — While we’re at it, let’s throw rockstar, guru, and wizard into the ring. All of these are terms appended to the end of phrases like “content marketing” or “HTML/CSS” to convey that someone is really good at what they do. But unless job descriptions have changed over the past year, most of our marketing jobs don’t require an extensive knowledge of martial arts, rock and roll, or magic (much to our chagrin).

8. Pain Point — Let’s face it, “addressing pain points” sounds a lot cooler than the (far more accurate) alternative: fixing problems. But a word to the wise, marketers run the risk of sounding a little pretentious when the phrase “pain points” is overused. Remember, you don’t have an MD (okay, maybe you do…), so try not to sound like you’re making a diagnosis.

9. Push the Envelope — If you’re “pushing the envelope,” then you’re testing your boundaries or pushing the limits of what’s been done in the past (still trying to figure out where the envelope factors in here).

10. Return on Involvement — Brands that are more involved with their communities will see a greater return on investment. There’s actually a good bit of truth to this one, as we’ve written about in a previous blog post, so we’ll leave it alone.

11. Snackable Content — While “snackable” content does sound both cuter and tastier, it’s really just referring to the trend of producing content that is shorter-form and easier to digest (get it?).

Well what do you know, you made it to the end! Any other buzzwords that you would add to the list? Let us know in the comments!

I explained to a company that I no longer needed their service, and they told me they would have someone “reach out” to me to find out how to keep me as a customer. Upon opening a new brokerage account today, the rep told me he would have the “options express” department “reach out” to me to explain their service. I think they should just keep their hands to themselves and call me.